Paint stripping is generally accomplished through one of three methods: simple scraping; the utilization of a heat gun in association with a scraper, typically referred to as a "burn off" scraper; or, the use of a chemical agent in combination with a scraping or lifting tool. The scraper generally comprises a blade attached to a handle. During a paint scraping operation, the blade is pushed underneath the paint, stripping same from the painted surface. The paint may be rendered loose and pliable so as to form a sludge by chemical means or the like.
A wide variety of scrapers are known. A typical conventional scraper comprises a flat, spatula-shaped blade mounted on a plastic or wooden handle. In some instances, the blade has a beveled, i.e., knife-like, forward edge to facilitate scraping. Typically, the blade is made from metal such as stainless steel.
A problem with this type of conventional scraper is that the relatively thin, flat, blades are often flexible, especially if metal, and bend during use. This flexing or bending may not only make scraping difficult, but if excessive it may also render the tool permanently damaged. If a flat, non-bendable, material is used, the blade may fracture rather than flex.
A wide variety of shapes of blades are well known in the art. Some blades include portions to enable easy access to corners, painted cracks and painted crevices.
The better known and most common blade-type scrapers generally have a handle which is substantially coplanar with the blade. Thus, this scraper has first and second sides, which are generally mirror images of one another and which are substantially identical.
In other arrangements the handle is angled relative to the blade. An advantage obtained from these arrangements is that the blade may be readily used with the handle bent outwardly from the surface being stripped, so that a worker's fingers can be wrapped around the handle and fit between the handle and the surface being worked on. A disadvantage in many such systems is that the angled handle tends to exacerbate the problem of blade bending. That is, force directed along the handle is asymmetric, with respect to the plane of the blade, encouraging undesired blade bending.
Another problem with many conventional scraper blades is that they contain no means for collection or deflection of scraped paint or sludge and the scraped material might be directed onto the worker's hands. This is not only potentially messy, but the paint sludge may also be harmful if it has been formed from chemical removed of the paint. This can lead to a substantial risk of irritating a worker's hand.
Many conventional scrapers only have a single, long, straight, scraping blade. Such blades are not well suited for scraping paint from curved surfaces such as furniture legs and railings. Thus with such arrangements more than one scraping tool may be needed.
What has been needed has been a versatile scraping tool which contains a reinforced scraping blade and which is not generally subject to the problems previously detailed.